DEVELOPMENT EVENTS

3 - 16 Noviembre Curso nacional de Nivel 2 - Havana, Cuba
4 - 8 November ITF South American Regional Coaches Conference - Foz de Iguacu, Brazil
7 - 15 November ITF/OS Level 1 Coaches course - Mufulira, Zambia
8 - 13 November ITF/TE Regional Coaches Workshop - Poznan, Poland
11 - 22 Noviembre Curso de Nivel 2 de SO/ITF - Guayaquil, Ecuador
17 - 28 November ITF/OS Regional Level 2 Coaches Course - Delhi, India
28 November - 1 December Play and Stay Seminar 2008 - London, UK
1 - 3 December Play Tennis Course - Villa Clara, Cuba
5 - 7 December Play Tennis Course - Havana, Cuba

Tennis iCoach News

• ITF Lesson Plans for Beginner Players: LESSONS 1-4
• Cognitive Techniques to Manage Performance Anxiety in Tennis - Dr Andrew Peden
• Observation of Training Sessions and Pre Match Preparation - Philipp Born,Martin Heck, Malte Krüger, Veit Langholz, Philipp Zimmer
• Watch the Ball - Damien Lafont

ITF Regional Coaches Conferences

14th ITF Asian Regional Coaches Conference successfully concludes in China

The 14th ITF Asian Coaches Conference concluded this week end in Shenzhen. Over 140 coaches from 17 Asian nations gathered at the beautiful venue of the Yuedong Tennis Club which earlier this year hosted the Asian qualifying of the World Junior Tennis Competition.

The vice president of the Chinese Tennis Association, Mrs Sun Jing Fang and Mr Eichii Kawatei, ITF Honorary Life Vice President were in attendance.

Outstanding speakers such as Craig Morris (AUS), Antoni Girod (FRA) and Mike Barrell (GBR) and Kenneth Baastiens (BEL) who are all regular presenters at the Worldwide Coaches Conference, received acclaimed feedback from the Asian coaches. The topics touched on all aspects of junior development with special emphasis on the 10 & Under age group, mental drills for junior players and power training for tennis athletes.

Prior to the conference, the ITF held an Asian tutors course which enabled the participants to brainstorm and discuss how to improve the ITF syllabi, content and schedule of its various courses.

North African Regional Coaches Conference

The ITF, in conjunction with Olympic Solidarity, the Tunisian Tennis Federation and the Confederation of African Tennis, hosted the North African Coaches Conference in the southern Tunisian city of Sousse. The 95 participants came from as far as Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Mauritania and Mali to listen to lectures from the following top experts from France - Bernard Pestre, Antoni Girod and Dominique Cisse. They presented topics such as progressive tennis, mental approach of the game, development of specific fitness of tennis. The Play & Stay campaign was also well received by all coaches.

Bernard Pestre, in charge of coaches' education for the French Tennis Federation commented, "This perfectly organized Conference has shown the high level of knowledge of the participants. The presentations, exchange of ideas and questions demonstrated both the involvement and the pedagogical experience of the coaches."

CURSOS PARA ENTRENADORES EN SUDAMÉRICA

Curso de Nivel 1 celebrado en Asunción, Paraguay

Del 09 al 17 de Septiembre del 2008, se llevó a cabo en Asunción, Paraguay un curso de Nivel 1 organizado por la Asociación Paraguaya de Tenis y la certificación de COSAT. El Tutor ITF es el Profesor Richard González de Uruguay.

El Curso se desarrolló en las excelentes instalaciones del CIT (Club Internacional de Tenis). La coordinación estuvo a cargo del Sr. Jorge Benítez. Destacamos la participación y dedicación de los entrenadores.

El curso ha sido financiado gracias a los esfuerzos conjuntos de la ITF, el club CIT, el Comité Olímpico Paraguayo y la APT.

El Sr. Camilo Perez (Presidente de la APT); junto a Juan Pablo Aguila (Vicepresidente de la APT); el Sr. Félix Morales (Vicepresidente del CIT) y Miguel Yudis (Presidente del comité de tenis del CIT), hicieron entrega en la ceremonia de clausura de los certificados de asistencias ITF.

Curso de Nivel 2 para Entrenadores Avanzados en Chile

Del 27 de Septiembre al 8 de Octubre se está celebrando en Chile este Curso de Nivel 2 para Entrenadores y Profesores de Tenis. Cuenta con los fondos de Solidaridad Olímpica y se lleva a cabo en la ciudad de Santiago en las instalaciones de la Federación Chilena de Tenis (FTCH) de la Comuna de San Miguel, por Iván Molina y Richard González.

Asisten un total de 24 profesores, entre los que se destacan 2 mujeres, todos ellos Chilenos, han mostrado un gran interés en adquirir nuevas ideas que los lleven a desarrollar unos conceptos más amplios para el trabajo con jugadores de competencia.

La Federación, bajo la dirección del Sr. Pedro Garzón y con la coordinación - administración de la Sra. Alejandra Gamboa y Rodrigo Cortéz, ha dispuesto de todos los medios a su alcance para el buen funcionamiento.

El Sr. Garzón en sus palabras de bienvenida, además de agradecer a Solidaridad Olímpica e ITF el esfuerzo y apoyo por llevar adelante este Curso, destacaba el enorme interés que tiene la Federación de Tenis de Chile por continuar con los procesos de Capacitación de Entrenadores en este país. Señalaba que este Curso se enmarca dentro de una serie de actividades que viene desarrollando la FTCH en esta área, siendo este, uno de los más importantes.

COURSES IN AFRICA

Eritrea hosts its first ever Level 1 Coaches Course

"Eritrea Tennis Federation will revive tennis in the country and will run it professionally. Eritrea should not play catch up but it should be at a par with the rest of the region." These were the words from the newly elected President of the Federation, Daniel Yohannes during the closing ceremony of the first ever Level 1 Coaches Course to be organized in Eritrea.

The course which started with a 2-day mini tennis course from 23-24 October attracted 34 participants including teachers from 16 schools while the Level 1 course which was from 25 - 31 October had 19 participants.

For the full article click HERE

East Africa Regional Play Tennis Course concludes in Nairobi

The first East Africa Regional Play Tennis Coaches and Tutors course came to close on Saturday 18th October 2008 at the Parklands Sports Club in Nairobi, Kenya. The course was divided into two parts, a regional tutors' course and a national Play Tennis course. The two courses, each of three days duration, attracted a total of 32 participants from the following countries: Burundi, Egypt, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and the host nation Kenya.

The main objective of the two courses was to teach the participants on how to improve the way in which coaches introduce tennis to starter players and by ensuring that a starter tennis player's first experience is enjoyable and positive. By so doing, this methodology aims at retaining more players in the game. Participants also learnt how reducing the court dimensions and using different size balls can accelerate the learning process for starter players.

The two courses were conducted by Mr Mark Tennant (GBR) with the assistance of the ITF Development Officer for East Africa, Mr Prince Madema.

Proceedings came to close with encouraging words from the KLTA Chairman who told coaches to be proactive and that they should take the leading role in tennis development as he believed that coaches have the practical knowledge. He further thanked the ITF and Olympic Solidarity for their continued support of the coach's education programme. He noted that bringing coaches together through such projects is good since it gives coaches an opportunity to share information and address the problems of the region collectively.

COURSES IN Central America and Caribbean

Curso Play Tennis se celebra en Honduras

En Tegucigalpa, Honduras se realizó el curso Play Tennis del 6 al 9 de octubre. Asistieron 16 participantes de diferentes clubes y escuelas de la ciudad. Los profesores estuvieron muy animados a pesar de que el mal tiempo estuvo presente durante los tres días del curso.

El comentario de entre los participantes fue que, este tipo de talleres viene a contribuir para atraer a nuevos jugadores y demuestra que el tenis es fácil y divertido tal y como lo dice la campaña de ITF de juega al tenis y quédese ("Play and Stay").

A la clausura asistió la presidenta de la Federación Hondureña de Tenis la Licda. Nohemy Barahona, quien dio gracias a ITF por el apoyo y la confianza que han dado a la Federación Hondureña de Tenis, ya que esto viene a contribuir en el desarrollo de los entrenadores de este país.

Haiti hosts an ITF/OS Level 1 Coaches Course

Despite the challenges of being hit by four hurricanes in the last few months, it did not dampen the spirits and commitment of the Fédération Haitienne de Tennis and their coaches made it a priority to participate in the Level 1 Coaches Course, which concluded on Wednesday 22nd October 2008, benefiting from nine days of excellent weather.

Twenty coaches from different provinces in Haiti participated in the course; some for the first time and others as a refresher, since the last course was organized over six years ago. The course was an inspiration to the coaches who had the opportunity to further improve their knowledge of the game.

With the high number of good junior players in Haiti, the course has brought hope that the level of the players will improve thanks to the coaches receiving further education, especially related to the science and technology of the game.

Frantz Liautaud, the outgoing President of the Federation said that he looked forward to more coaches education in the future.

NEWS FROM NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND OTHER ORGANISATIONS

Following on from the success of the inaugural Australian Grand Slam Coaches Conference, Tennis Australia will be conducting the Australian Grand Slam Coaches Conference again in 2009.

General Information The 2009 Australian Grand Slam Coaches Conference will be conducted on-site at Hisense Arena (formerly Vodafone Arena) 15-17 January prior to the Australian Open, which commences 19 January. This Tennis Australia conference is endorsed by the International Tennis Federation and is one of the largest Asia Pacific events for coaches.

Participants The conference is tailored to tennis coaches; however, the topics will also be of interest to tennis enthusiasts and coaches from other sports. Delegates are requested to wear sports clothes or casual attire.

Program Program will be available soon. Confirmed speakers to date are:

• -Mike Barrell, ITF sponsored speaker, England
• -Bruce Elliott, Professor of biomechanics, University Western Australia
• -Damian Farrow, Skill Acquisition Specialist, Australian Institute of Sport
• -Chuck Kriese, Technical Director for South East Asia Tennis Association
• -Craig Morris, Manager Athlete Development, Tennis Australia
• -Felix Mantilla, AIS Pro Tour Program Tennis Coach, Spain
• -Dan Santorum, CEO, Professional Tennis Registry, USA
• -Craig Tiley, Director Tennis and Tournament Director Australian Open, Tennis Australia
• -Todd Woodbridge, Tournament Director for Legends, Australian Open and Tennis Australia Player Representative

For more information click HERE

PHD SCHOLARSHIP IN BIOMECHANICS OF TENNIS

Applications are invited for a joint PhD scholarship being offered by Tennis Australia (TA) and the School of Sport Science, Exercise and Health at The University of Western Australia (UWA). The scholarship provides an exciting opportunity for graduates with a relevant Class I or IIa Honours degree or equivalent to undertake applied sport science research in tennis in close collaboration with sport scientists, coaches and players. The successful applicant will be enrolled and primarily based at UWA in Perth, but may spend a portion of the candidature at different Tennis Australia training venues, including the AIS in Canberra. Supervisors will be appointed from UWA and TA. The scholarship will be $24,000 per annum (tax-free) for a period of up to 3.5 years subject to satisfactory annual progress. The research will focus on the biomechanics of tennis stroke production using 3D motion analysis technology. Applicants must be able to demonstrate well-developed knowledge and labor atory and research skills in biomechanics and related scientific areas. Analytical aptitude and excellent communication skills are also required. Applications including curriculum vitae, the names of three professional referees and a statement on research interests should be forwarded to Prof. Bruce Elliott by 17 November 2008.

It is envisaged that the scholarship will commence as early as possible in 2009. Enquiries and terms of the scholarship can be obtained from Prof. Bruce Elliott, University of Western Australia [phone (08) 6488 2274; Esta dirección electrónica esta protegida contra spambots. Es necesario activar Javascript para visualizarla ] or Dr. Machar Reid, Sport Science Manager, Tennis Australia [phone (03) 9914 4229; Esta dirección electrónica esta protegida contra spambots. Es necesario activar Javascript para visualizarla ]